


The First Batch Always Flops

by tinylilremus



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Merlin fixes the aftermath of the casual sex, Romantic Comedy, arthur regrets the casual sex, gwaine likes casual sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-23
Updated: 2016-11-23
Packaged: 2018-09-01 19:41:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,706
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8635612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tinylilremus/pseuds/tinylilremus
Summary: Merlin is used to occasionally walking into the kitchen to meet the sad an embarrassed eyes of the last person to go through Gwaine's bed. What he's not used to is finding them irresistibly good-looking and suddenly having the strange urge to make them pancakes to make up for Gwaine's carelessness.  Arthur seems to be a special case.





	

_Oh, no. Not again._

That’s Merlin’s first thought upon seeing the strange blond man in his kitchen. He’s wearing what are clearly last night’s clothes (dark wash jeans and a scarlet button-up) as well as that look of regret and embarrassment he’s seen on so many of the people who have been through Gwaine’s bed.

He knows Gwaine doesn’t _mean_ to hurt anyone (the man is basically a human labrador puppy) but he’s impulsive and careless and no matter how many times Merlin has told him to be discerning about the men and women he sleeps with, he can’t seem to understand that not everyone is as good at one-night stands as he is.

Merlin, for instance, is still dealing with his string of ‘just-tonights’ with Gwaine five years later.

The current victim turns around sharply when he hears Merlin enter the kitchen, causing the water in the glass he’s holding to slosh violently and spill onto his hand. He looks like he’s been caught in the middle of a burglary and Merlin has to fight an amused smile at his look of terror.

“Sorry, I’m leaving now,” he says, staring at Merlin horrified. “I just… water.”

He lifts the glass to show Merlin causing the water to splash onto the ground.

“Shit, sorry.” The man sets the glass down on the kitchen counter, grabs a cloth from the sink and drops to his knees to mop up the mess he’s made. His hands are shaking.

Merlin ordinarily lets Gwaine’s conquests gather their things and go with little-to-no interaction; It’s easier and less embarrassing for everyone involved. Seeing how tightly wound this man is, though, and how shattered he seems by the experience, fills Merlin with a sudden rush of protectiveness.

He walks over to him and goes down on his haunches so that they’re at eye-level.

“Hey mate, it’s alright,” he says, gently taking hold of the man’s arm to stop him. “It’s just a bit of water. Don’t stress. Seriously. In any case, you look like you need more than water in you. We haven’t been past a shop in a while so I can’t offer much, but would you like some breakfast?”

“No, I should… I should…” the man scrambles to his feet and Merlin stands up too. Now that they’re closer he realises that they’re more or less the same height. He also realises, with a strange jolt, that the man is incredibly gorgeous. That part shouldn’t come as a shock (Gwaine usually sleeps with people who look like they’ve materialised from the pages of a magazine) but something about the shade of blue his eyes are or how strong his jaw is or how his faint five o’clock shadow draws attention to his perfect lips, has Merlin suddenly very inconveniently attracted to his roommate’s latest one-night stand.

He’d probably be concerned about it if he wasn’t so distracted by the man’s shirt and how the top few buttons aren’t done up, revealing creamy pale skin with a faint dusting of hair.

 _Jesus Christ_ he doesn’t even know the guy’s name. _Get a grip, Merlin._

“Look, I’m not going to make you stay if you’d rather leave,” he says, jolting himself back to reality, “but I know for a fact that Gwaine is going to be out all day now to give you time to leave before he’s back. The least I can do is get you something to eat. Consider it a  ‘I’m-Sorry-My-Roommate-Is-Kind-Of-A-Dick’ apology gift.”

“I…” begins the man, still hesitant. Merlin offers him a small smile and is surprised when something in the man’s face relaxes as he returns it. “I’m kind of starving to tell you the truth.”

Merlin can’t stop his smile from spreading into a grin.

“Great. Do pancakes work for you?” he asks. “It’s pretty much all I can offer at this point. If you’re gluten intolerant or just don’t like pancakes or whatever, it’s no trouble. You’ll just need to give me half an hour or so to get something else from the shop.”

“No, pancakes are great,” smiles the man. “Thank you.”

He’s painfully posh and polite and Merlin wonders how a walking, talking Jane Austen character ended up wandering into a situation like this.

“No worries,” says Merlin, feeling flushed as he puts on a pot of coffee before busying himself with gathering the ingredients for the batter.

“I’m Arthur, by the way,” says the man, settling down on one of the stools at the breakfast bar.

Merlin has to suppress an incredulous laugh because of _course_ his name is Arthur.

“Merlin,” he replies as he breaks eggs into a mixing bowl.

“Yeah, you’re spot-on,” says Arthur with a sheepish smile. “It’s embarrassing but my dad named me because he was fascinated by the legends growing up.”

“No, I mean my name is Merlin,” he replies. “No jokes. My mum named me for the legends too.”

“Whoa and I thought I had it rough,” says Arthur. “What are the chances?”

Merlin is secretly asking the universe the same question. This all feels too coincidental to be a coincidence.

There’s silence in the kitchen while Merlin beats the eggs and adds sugar to them. The only sound comes from the clacking of the whisk against the plastic bowl and the clock on the wall that’s four and a half hours fast because neither he nor Gwaine could be bothered to change it. It’s so awkward Merlin wants to drown himself in the egg mixture.

He’s just considering putting on a bit of music so there’ll at least be some kind of background noise, when Arthur breaks the silence for him.

“Er, thanks again for doing this. I mean, last night and this morning have been… well they’ve definitely not been the best of times, so I really appreciate it.”

“It’s seriously no problem,” says Merlin, scooping a bit of butter from the tub with a measuring cup and putting it into the microwave for a few seconds to melt it. “I’m just curious though: why did you do it? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m not judging you or anything. It’s just that Gwaine has a bit of a reputation. Didn’t anyone warn you?”

“I approached him last night _because_ of his reputation,” explains Arthur. “I’ve only recently come to terms with the fact that I’m… well that I’m gay, and I’d never been with a man before so…”

“So you went with Gwaine because you knew that he would… god, he was your first?”

“My first bloke, yeah,” grimaces Arthur.  “And, look, I’ve had many a one-night stand with women before. I know how it’s supposed to go. No feelings, no attachments. I get it. But it’s just… last night was the first night it felt, I dunno, _right?_ Like how everyone says it’s meant to feel while it’s happening. And I guess in the excitement and wonder of it all, I just… forgot it was just a one-time thing. Finding the note from Gwaine this morning was quite the reality check.”

“God, that’s… that sucks, Arthur, I’m sorry,” says Merlin, with a pang of sympathy. Gwaine would be the last person Merlin would suggest for anyone’s first time, especially not someone just figuring himself out. “Though, if it makes you feel any better, my first time was in highschool with a bloke a from the football team, a few years older than me, who went around calling me ‘Bum-Wizard’ to everyone after that. And honestly, I was more upset at the lack of creativity than anything. I mean ‘Bum-Wizard’, when ‘Bumbledore’ was right there for the taking? At least put some effort into it. In any case, he’s married now and he’s had two kids with his wife, so we’ll see how that goes.”

“How much do you want to bet that he’s on Grindr?” asks Arthur, his face breaking into a mischievous smirk that reveals dazzling white and adorably crooked teeth and Merlin’s heart stutters unhelpfully. Reminding himself that Arthur’s just had a pretty emotional morning and doesn’t need some scrawny History student making googly eyes at him (especially not one who was roommates with the bloke who had caused all the morning’s emotional distress), Merlin reins in his sudden surge of feelings.

He adds the last of the milk to the batter and sets a pan on one of the stove plates, suddenly hyper-aware of the fact that Arthur’s eyes might be on him. It makes him feel clumsy and uncoordinated and Merlin wonders if dropping a small pat of butter into a pan has ever required this much concentration.

“Er, Merlin, it looks like the coffee’s finished. Can I get that for you?” asks Arthur, cutting through Merlin’s sudden tension. He’s never been more grateful to a coffee machine in his life.

“Yeah, thanks. That would help a lot,” smiles Merlin, handing Arthur the milk. “Mugs are in the cupboard above the sink and there’s sugar in a jar next to the machine if you need it. I don’t take any, but I do take a bit of milk.”

It’s a bit easier to focus on the task at hand while Arthur’s busy with the coffees and by the time Arthur walks up to him with his steaming mug, Merlin’s just about got a grip on himself again.

“So, tell me, do you make ‘I’m-Sorry-My-Roommate-Is-Kind-Of-A-Dick’ breakfasts for all of Gwaine’s conquests or did I just get lucky today?” asks Arthur as he leans against the counter next to the stove. Now that he’s cheering up, he’s gaining confidence and Merlin finds he enjoys the amused glint in his eye and slight cheekiness of his grin. “Or, is it perhaps my devastating good looks?”

Merlin freezes. That sounded a lot like flirting and he glances at Arthur to see if he’s just taking the mickey.  He doesn’t know Arthur well enough to tell one way or the other though so, begging himself not to say anything stupid, he decides to test the waters.

“Damn, you’ve got me,” he says, exaggerating rolling his eyes. “I took one look at your bedhead, bloodshot eyes and clothes from the night before and thought ‘now that’s a man I’d like to cook some pancakes for’.”

“You’re being sarcastic, but isn’t that more or less exactly what happened?” Arthur folds his arms across his chest with a smirk, quirking up an eyebrow in question. Merlin can’t quite find a way to respond to this and sputters hopelessly a few times before Arthur chuckles and puts him out of his misery. “And to think I was going to leave before I got a chance to see how red your face could actually go.”

If Merlin wasn’t blushing a moment ago, he certainly is now. He can feel it creeping up his neck, making his face feel like it’s on fire.

“What was it that made you stay then? Was it my ‘devastating good looks’ too?”

He says it jokingly because while he knows he’s not completely unfortunate-looking, guys like Arthur date underwear models or movie stars, not skinny nerd-hipster hybrids who know how to make pancakes without having to consult the recipe and who blush at the slightest suggestion.

“Well I mean, believe it or not I am actually hungry,” says Arthur and then after suddenly becoming very interested in one of the tiles on the floor in front of him, he adds, “but yeah, that’s pretty much it.”

Arthur looks nervous and unsure, but Merlin can’t find any trace of joking on his face. For a moment, he forgets how to breathe and even though he’s pretty sure his pancakes are becoming a little overdone, he can’t seem to remember how to turn them over.

_Think, Merlin, think. An outrageously hot guy just told you he stayed for breakfast because he thinks you’re cute. What do you do with that information?_

“Shit, okay, I’ve said too much,” says Arthur, awkwardly toeing the tile that was fascinating him.

“No, Arthur, it’s alright,” says Merlin, completely abandoning his pancakes to look at Arthur full-on. He takes a deep breath, steeling himself for what he’s about to say. Arthur looks beyond worried and it’s him biting nervously on his bottom lip that gives Merlin the resolve he needs.

“Look, the truth is that I think you’re gorgeous and you saying that you think I’m cute is kind of short-circuiting my brain right now in the best way, but this isn’t a normal situation. This is all happening because you slept with my roommate who, despite being on of the biggest sluts I know, is still one of my best friends. Do I want to date the heck out of you? Sure. But Gwaine’s not going anywhere, so if that’s going to be too awkward for you, let’s just have these pancakes and then carry on with our lives.”

“I have no issues with seeing Gwaine again, Merlin, and aside from that, I can only see two other potential hiccups.”

“And those are?” Merlin’s heart is racing so fast that he’s sure that he’s about to pass out at any second.

“Well firstly, do you have any romantic feelings towards him?” Arthur asks, slowly moving closer to Merlin.

“Once,” replies Merlin honestly, swallowing as he watches Arthur approach. “Not anymore. Not for a long time.”

“Alright, secondly, would me being with you negatively affect your friendship with him in any way?”

They’re standing so close now that Merlin can count the stitches on Arthur’s shirt and he can practically feel the warmth that he’s radiating.

“Not really,” he breathes. He’s talking to Arthur’s chin because Merlin’s eyes just won’t tear themselves from his lips. They’re only a few inches away from his now. It would be so easy to just…

He doesn’t get to finish that thought and, indeed, doesn’t _need_ to finish that thought because a moment later, Arthur’s closed the small distance between them and is kissing him. Merlin lets his spatula clatter to the floor in surprise. It takes a moment or two for his brain to catch up with what’s happening, but eventually he’s winding his arms around Arthur’s waist like it’s the most natural thing in the world. Arthur’s hands are gently moving up Merlin’s neck to tangle in his hair and Merlin’s grateful for Arthur’s solid weight in front of him because he feels like his knees are going to give way at any moment. His whole world seems to have narrowed down to the softness of Arthur’s lips as they sweep across his, to how Arthur’s mouth tastes like the coffee they haven’t finished yet, to how he can’t tell if the heartbeat he can feel thudding against his chest is his or Arthur’s.

Merlin eventually pulls away from Arthur more out of the need to breathe than any desire for it to end and he rests his forehead against Arthur’s as he tries to get air flowing back into his lungs.

“That was… _wow,_ ” pants Arthur and his simple statement somehow makes everything even more amazing.

“Yeah,” agrees Merlin, giving into the stubborn smile taking over his features. “I’m serious though – I do still want to take you on a proper date. I mean, this was amazing and we should definitely do more of it sometime soon, but I also want to introduce you to the wonderful world of going out with someone you’re actually attracted to. I-if you want that is. Otherwise I’m happy to just keep doing this.”

“I’d love to go out with you sometime,” Arthur chuckles. “But yes, I definitely agree – more of this too.”

It’s then that the strong smell of burning pastry hits Merlin and he coughs at the smoke issuing from the forgotten pan.

“Shit!” he says, scrambling to get the pan off the heat, three charred black circles staring mockingly up at him as Arthur giggles behind him. “Fuck, well those are a write-off.”

“In my limited experience, the firsts usually are,” says Arthur and as Merlin turns to look at him, something in his fond smile tells Merlin that he’s talking about more than just the pancakes.

He’s never in his life been more determined to make a perfect second batch.


End file.
